Despite what some say, i can't see any developed economies making a recovery and competition will get tougher and tougher. I think design is pretty much optomised too so I expect a lot of future development will centre around making kites simpler and cheaper (less struts etc) without lowering the performance level. I'm amazed at how many brands there are now, each with several models in several colours and many sizes...and i think with increased competition, there will be less choice. Fewer brands, less choice on colour, less choice in sizes. Just my thoughts.

scklandl wrote:And at least one jackass on the beach who spends all his time talking about the superiority of his ram air.

And we all know that guy. It's are all the same guy, no matter what the location he frequents or name he happens to be sporting. All the same dude, aging not-so-gracefully with his luxurius long flowing grey ponytail. Always the outcast by sub-concious choice, fighting "the man" by choosing what nobody else does, and trying to talk everyone else into it, and if he is successful in doing so, he needs to choose something else to outcast himself again.

A super light and strong kite line, so when the wind is nada on the beach, you can rig up 1,000m lines and fly off high air currents. Fancy kite resorts will have a stable of rental kites moored to a floating platform high in the air. You just bring a board and harness, hook up to a kite (they'd only need to be 3 square meters or so that high) and ride. Tangles? Um... I'm sure there would be a sci-fi solution for that, too.

In stunt kites, Skyshark makes a couple standard lines of carbon frames for kites made all over the world. This is nice because instead of carrying spare parts for each rod in all my kites, I can carry a few uncut Skyshark rods and then cut them to size when I need a replacement. So I wonder if the kiteboarding industry will standardize on some part, like the LEs, struts, or bladders to save money and make replacements easy. The kite frame company could make a standard line of leading edges and struts and kitemakers could use them as a starting point for kites.

Stunt kites also have a thriving "boutique" industry of lone kitemakers who build custom kites. They're not cheap, but it's cool to be able to design your own sail, consult with the maker on the exact kite you want, and get a much higher quality kite than something made in a factory. I love my twin JoE Talons -- they perform on a whole different level (wind range, trickability, agility, durability) than larger-market kites. I'm sure you can get custom kiteboarding kites now, but it's not the norm.

My predictions:
Best will buy out Slingshot in 2014, closely followed by acquiring Takoon and Wainmann in 2015 and the eternal rights to Kevin Langeree's soul in 2016. North reply by buying out Switch and then Naish. In 2018, Flash Austin is elected as the 268th pope. Following the great Cabrinha war of 2020, only Best and North remain, splitting kiters firmly into two tribes; those that want a flying cock on their kites and those that want their kite covered in meaningless slogans. This proves to be a boom time for colour blind graphics designers. By 2021, all bars are pointlessly over-engineered and kites are made of Cuban Fibre and have a lifespan of 3-4 months. In 2023 Tiger Woods learns to kite and kiteracing becomes the new golf, paving the way for it to be accepted into the 2032 Olympics.
Well, its about as likely as half the other crap written on this thread.

Jackie Treehorn wrote:My predictions:
Best will buy out Slingshot in 2014, closely followed by acquiring Takoon and Wainmann in 2015 and the eternal rights to Kevin Langeree's soul in 2016. North reply by buying out Switch and then Naish. In 2018, Flash Austin is elected as the 268th pope. Following the great Cabrinha war of 2020, only Best and North remain, splitting kiters firmly into two tribes; those that want a flying cock on their kites and those that want their kite covered in meaningless slogans. This proves to be a boom time for colour blind graphics designers. By 2021, all bars are pointlessly over-engineered and kites are made of Cuban Fibre and have a lifespan of 3-4 months. In 2023 Tiger Woods learns to kite and kiteracing becomes the new golf, paving the way for it to be accepted into the 2032 Olympics.
Well, its about as likely as half the other crap written on this thread.

SaulOhio wrote:Asimov style robots as kite slaves, pumping them up for you and helping you launch and land them.

Then they go running after you to keep you from engaging in this hazardous sport in keeping with the First Law of Robotics.

love that view.. if anything hopefully they will weight half as much as they do now. that's one area where they could really improve.. considering the fact that as wind force decreases more and more of the area of the kite is devoted to keeping the kite in the air.